Selecting the right method for measuring high-power fiber lasers — whether with a camera, a scanning-slit system, or Rayleigh scattering — requires knowledge of the benefits and constraints of each.KEVIN KIRKHAM, OPHIRFiber lasers are used in ever-increasing numbers across a range of applications. In the 2- to 20-kW-power output range, laser applications are growing in materials processing and in finesse applications such as 3D micromilling, microcutting, blind-hole machining, and additive manufacturing. According to Hexa Research, “High-power cutting and welding is a leading application in the [fiber laser] market. This could be attributed to increasing use of the product in tube cutting, flat sheet cutting, 3D cutting, car body scanner welding, power train welding, and tube welding1.” ...Read full articleRelated content from Photonics MediaARTICLESMeasuring High-Power Materials Processing Lasers with Camera-Based Beam ProfilersFrom cutting steel to drilling via holes in silicon to marking plastic, a wide range of materials processes now use high-power lasers. Ever-growing demands for increased productivity and reduced...Photonics Spectra July 2020 IssueAntireflection Coatings for High-Power Fiber Laser OpticsHigh-power kilowatt-level fiber lasers operating between 1.0 and 1.1 µm find frequent use in macro-materials processing applications, such as cutting and welding metal sheets. The nature of...Photonics Spectra September 2020 IssueBeam Profiling: What Is Your Laser Not Telling You?While it may seem intuitive that turning up the power on a laser will produce faster results in a materials processing operation, beam measurement tools often reveal that this only distributes the...Photonics Spectra June 2021 IssueDiamond Raman Lasers Offer Multifaceted PotentialEver since Ted Maiman used a flash-pumped synthetic ruby crystal to generate the first coherent light source in 1960, the development of optical gain media has become a critical area of study for...Photonics Spectra September 2020 IssuePRODUCTSM2 for Long Focal Length LensesThe BeamSquared® beam profiler is a compact, fully automated tool for measuring the propagation characteristics of CW and pulsed laser systems from UV to XNIR wavelengths. 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The...Photonics Spectra May 2022 IssueYb-Doped Fiber Amplifier ModuleA Ytterbium (Yb)-doped fiber amplifier module from AdValue Photonics Inc. is designed to handle mW peak power for 15-ps pulse widths and 70-kW peak power for 5-ns pulse width in single-frequency...Photonics.com 8/14/2020PHOTONICS HANDBOOK ARTICLESLaser Measurement Systems: Best Practices: When purchasing a laser, learning how to apply, troubleshoot, and evaluate that device is very important.Given the pace at which technology advances, there always seems to be a learning curve. With the abundance of consumer electronics available, there typically is no right or wrong way to use these...Photonics HandbookBeamsplitters: A Guide for Designers: With the large variety of beamsplitters available, the designer needs to take many factors into consideration. This article and its illustrations will go a long way toward making the correct choice less of a risk. All curves show typical performance.Plate beamsplitters Plate beamsplitters consist of a thin plate of optical crown glass with a different type of coating deposited on each side. The first surface is coated with an all-dielectric...Photonics HandbookThin-Film Coatings: A Buyers' Guide: The vast majority of optics used in precision scientific, industrial, biomedical, and military applications incorporate thin-film coatings on their surfaces. Therefore, it’s useful for almost anyone involved in the specification and purchase of optical components to have some familiarity with the typical performance characteristics, trade-offs and limitations of various coating types, as well as some knowledge of the capabilities of common thin-film production technologies. This article provides an objective overview of both these topics.What are thin-film coatings? 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